Rural Life

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- Office of Rural Life Ministry
  
  Diocese of Madison
  
  The Office of Rural Life Ministry serves the people of the Diocese of Madison by supporting the unique spiritual, social, and economic needs of rural communities. Through ongoing listening sessions, dialogue, and collaboration, the office works to understand the challenges faced by family farmers, agricultural workers, and small-town parishes – and to respond with practical support and pastoral care.
  
  In alignment with the Into the Deep strategic plan, the ministry focuses on key priorities such as increasing access to services in rural areas, retaining and engaging youth within their local communities, promoting adult faith formation, and helping rural pastorates build strong, sustainable leadership teams.
- 2021-2022 Listening Sessions
- Top Priorities for 2023 and Beyond
2021-2022 Listening Sessions
- The Reality of Rural Life in the Diocese of Madison
  
  Bishop Hying began to personally attend the Diocese of Madison Rural Life Listening Sessions in Autumn 2021 and completed listening sessions in all 11 counties of our rural Diocese. The Bishop tasked the Rural Life Coordinator to assist and conduct each of the county sessions; allowing our Bishop to, in his own words "spend more time in our smaller communities with a focus on listening to the needs and challenges of our rural farmers and producers and the rural communities in which they live and work and to respond with practical help. How do we offer spiritual support, access the existing services and advocate for sustainable family Farms?" It starts with listening and learning from those most directly impacted by the current farming crisis across our family farms and struggling rural communities.
  Download Rural Life Listening Sessions Report
Top Priorities for 2023 and Beyond
- Rural Ministry in Light of Into the Deep
  
  Counseling and extensive services for individuals, families, and communities at repurposed parish sites throughout the diocese
  Keeping youth in the communities and engaging the youth in the respective pastorates
  Adult faith formation by pastorates
  Be a resource organizer and distributor i.e. Harvest of Hope
  For pastorates in rural areas to have full-time staffs
Gifts of Our Rural Communities

Report Summary
- Rural living and community
  Rural living and community – joy of rural county; strong community support; citizen involvement in politics; solid work force – reliable employees/strong work ethic; English ESL availability through library system; Catholic Charities; St. Vincent de Paul; Knights of Columbus; Diocesan Council of Catholic Women; strong family values; other lay volunteer associations; our Family; strong volunteer EMT and Fire services; trust; WCC strong relationship in legislature; good community support in crisis; cooperation amongst various denominations and assistance to their community
- Parish community
  Parish community – supportive religious sisters and deacons; support the “Family Home Church”; gift of vocations to Church, religious, and military; aging services/Catholic Charities (CC) Care Teams; Music ministry; building Evangelization efforts (with diocesan support); good parish cooperation between worship sites and communities; keeping in touch with our education-bound students out of county; power of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament; increased need to Pray for our Priest(s)
- Stewardship of the land
  Stewardship of the land – dairy grazing apprenticeship; abundant natural resources; favorable water resources (sustenance and recreational); strong sense of stewardship to our generational legacy to our land
- Parish priests
  Parish priests – our pastor as Shepherd; Holy Mass; liturgy for Spanish speakers (limited); strong leadership of our pastor; an individual priest's limited time in multiple parish communities; frequent priest assignments are disruptive to developing relationships within our parish
- Parishioners
  Parishioners - Drawing Youth back to the parish, seeking best ways to assist our priest; exploring tech to reach our absent youth members; Mass attendance declining
- Lay volunteers
  Lay volunteers – senior citizens, as the volunteers and service to others; need to recruit younger volunteers across all parish ministries; care and upkeep of local parishes, shrines and church properties
- Catholic schools
  Catholic schools – virtual high schools (live and local); skilled teaching staff; strong and supportive school community; Catholic School Produce Garden
- Religious education/formation
  Religious education/formation - develop Hispanic Community leadership training; consider parish staff and lay ministry training
- Farming as a vocation
  Farming as a vocation - Growing network of Organic/natural Food Producers - growing Female Farmer's network; good work ethic; multiple skill sets across available work force; developing rural tourism opportunities; farm stand local produce; developing local community garden projects
- The Bishop Hying Effect
  The Bishop Hying Effect – diocesan offices providing service and resources to parish ministries; Bishop Hying draws us closer to our Lord and Savior; visibility of Bishop Hying throughout our Rural Diocese of Madison; holding Rural Listening sessions throughout Diocese; our Bishop Hying
Challenges Facing Our Rural Communities

Report Summary
- Food, Fuel, and Fiber
  Food, Fuel, and Fiber – food cost both in production and as consumers; need for additional food pantry support to meet the increasing demand; surrounded by growing and expanding urban areas with urban-centered concerns; rural food pantry concerns/client id clarified
- Declining rural population
  Declining rural population – loss of parishes and their communities; loss of small businesses; housing shortage; loneliness across all age demographics; lack of youth/ young adult culture; difficulties of hiring and keeping young employees
- Youth exodus
  Youth exodus – limited options for children and youth programs, camps, and travel; Sunday Sports competing with Parish Liturgy/education programs (Sunday is Ours - family and faith); challenges to sustain youth oriented programs, Sunday sports programs drain parish of young members
- Lack of employment opportunities
  Lack of employment opportunities – low living wages and teen starting wages; language difficulties
- Lack of job training
  Lack of job training - Lower base wages in rural counties; worker shortage for employment; lack of Peer Leadership
- Limited support and family services
  Limited support and family services - Daily tensions of individual farming choices in a more complex and unforgiving economy- need for mental health programs; lack of affordable and safe childcare and senior-care; more Hispanic Clergy and Spanish Pastoral services; Evangelical Hispanic Churches; understaffed County social services
- Rural health issues
  Rural health issues – hospital/rural clinic employee shortages; high cost of healthcare for farmers; poverty is hidden within rural counties; Hispanic health care services; good primary care; lack of free time (for individuals and families); our isolated Seniors and their basic needs
- Lack of counseling services availability
  Lack of counseling services availability – reaching farmers in mental, spiritual, and physical distress; drug and alcohol abuse; depression and farmer suicide prevention; access to marriage and family counseling services; sexual orientation confusion; need for Women's Shelter and services, mental health needs and treatment options (both secular and Catholic faith-based counseling services
- Dwindling financial options
  Dwindling financial options – mileage covered in rural counties with inflated gas/fuel cost; farm estate planning difficulties; crop insurance; banking consolidation limiting small local bank options; fuel cost with greater distance to travel for all rural needs and activities
- Resource challenges
  Resource challenges - high and increasing land prices; government farm policy and excessive regulation; urban annexing of farm land; tax policies not favorable to farmers and rural communities; over regulation of production by state government; limited Catholic education for youth; need for a Catholic resource guide; limited professional services; limited access to groceries and fuel; limited rental/lease of local farm land- high prices; wind and solar farms challenging food production
- Infrastructure challenges
  Infrastructure challenges – no public mass transit for all people- especially seniors; limited WIFI/cell phone availability; impact of alternative energy and its production; poor roads in production areas; housing shortages (rental and private); limited locker/slaughter house facilities creates a production backlog; Catholic Radio service unobtainable outside Madison; lack of Hispanic Catholic Radio services; poor cell phone reception outside rural communities